Lance Duncan picks okra during a harvest session Friday, August 20, 2010 at the organic garden created by inmates and staff at the Travis County Crorrectional Complex in Del Valle. Duncan was enthusiastic about the garden and said he has been involved with organic vegetable gardening for a couple of years and plans to grow an organic vegetable garden after his release.
Photo by Larry Kolvoord. AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Organic gardens, indeed gardens of any sort, are not uncommon now in prisons of every state. They are, however, used sparingly at only the lowest security facilities. Rikers Island has a program, as do prisons in Washington State. Keep your eye out for more.
Before this post by The Austin American Statesman, I wasn’t aware of the program at Travis County Jail, Texas. Incidentally, Travis County also welcomed Billy Bragg and the JAIL GUITAR DOORS initiative at this years SXSW, which donates guitars to correctional facilities.
Prison Photography 
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September 1, 2010 at 4:48 am
Brendan
This reminded me of an article read a couple years back. Residents of a Nairobi slum had begun turning trash heaps into urban farms, and apparently many of the people doing the work were ex-convicts. I’m not sure how much of that last point is true and if so whether this fits into some rehabilitation idea but I thought you might be interested in pursuing the flipside of the equation. Maybe start here?
http://greendreams.edublogs.org/2008/05/02/organic-farming-in-kibera-kenyas-biggest-slum/
February 7, 2011 at 7:30 pm
danah
Why isn’t this everywhere I wonder? Is there something I’m missing in this equation?